We’ll see what kind of killer instinct the Montreal Canadiens and Los Angeles Kings have on Thursday night as both have a chance to use home-ice advantage to put a stranglehold on their respective series.

The Canadiens play the Boston Bruins in one of two second-round NHL playoff games tonight. L.A.-Anaheim is the other one.

Montreal has a chance to go up three games to one in the best-of-seven Atlantic Division series and you’ve got to like their chances at the Bell Centre.

“It’s been a great ride so far. I hope we keep it going for another five weeks,” said Canadiens forward Daniel Briere. “It’s fun to see the electricity in the city, how fired up the fans and the residents are.”

The Kings can go up three-games to none on the Ducks in L.A.’s Staples Centre.

Home teams are to 38-22 (.633) in the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs. Last year, home teams earned a record 59 wins in the postseason (59-27, .686), including a 20-4 mark in the second round (.833).

SUBBAN COMPARABLES

When they start bringing up the names of Hall of Famers like Larry Robinson and Scott Niedermayer, you know you have to be pretty good. And those are the names that are popping up when people talk about Montreal defenceman P.K. Subban.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, he is the first Canadiens defenceman to record a six-game playoff point streak since Robinson did so in Montreal’s second round series against the Quebec Nordiques from April 21-May 2, 1985. Subban’s 11 points currently lead all defencemen and rank third overall in the postseason.

And the Bruins have to find some way of figuring him out.

“You want to get in on him quicker, but he’s playing a great series, unbelievable,” Bruins forward Scott Thornton said of Subban. “He’s like Scott Niedermayer, so it’s easier said than done.”

BRUINS TIDBITS: The Bruins forward Matt Fraser from the Providence Bruins (American Hockey League) and assigned Justin Florek to the Providence Bruins. Fraser will will be eligible for Game 4. . . . Bruins D Seidenberg practised Wednesday but whether he plays remains a guessing game. Seidenberg has not played since suffering ACL/MCL tears on Dec. 27. He resumed skating one month ago.

KINGS-DUCKS

The Los Angeles Kings, too, can put a stranglehold on this series on Thursday night. They won the first two games in Anaheim and now can go up 3-0 with a win at home at the Staples Centre.

The Kings have won six games in a row and are looking more and more like the team that won the Stanley Cup in 2012.

It is the fifth time in three seasons the Kings will have returned home with a 2-0 series lead.

This is the year of the comeback, though — and remember the Kings rallied from a 3-0 series deficit to San Jose. So no one is taking anything for granted.

“You know what history says. A 2-0 lead is great but it’s not four wins,” centre Jarret Stolltold the L.A. Times. “We know that better than anybody and we also know that we haven’t played our best hockey to date.”

The only line change made by Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau at Wednesday’s practice was inserting Kyle Palmieri (14 goals, 17 assists in 71 games) in place of forward Emerson Etem on the line centred by Nick Bonino, with Devante Smith-Pelly on the other wing.

Kings defencemen Willie Mitchell and Robyn Regehr remain out because of undisclosed injuries. Forward Jeff Carter didn’t skate Wednesday but worked out off the ice and is expected to play Thursday.

RANGERS-PENGUINS

The New York Rangers are truly in trouble now, trailing their Metropolitan Division series three to one, with the series heading for Pittsburgh for Game 5 on the weekend.

Their top guns continue to shoot blanks. Rick Nash has yet score in the playoffs.

The Penguins seem to rolling. Even goalie Marc-Andre Fleury seems to have rediscovered his mojo.

Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist says the team has its work cut out for it after dropping two in a row at home.

“I think when you play against this team you have to realize that every little play matters,” Lundqvist told reporters. “They have the skill, and they do make you pay if you are not careful.

“Every little play matters against this team, especially in the playoffs when sometimes it might be hard to create that big scoring chance. We just have to stick together. It’s a tough feeling, no question, to lose two in a row at home here.

“We will try to learn from the last two games and realize what we need to do better. Just look at yourself, what can I do better to help this team win? And that’s the way we all have to look at it right now.”

BLACKHAWKS-WILD

Minnesota and Chicago don’t play until Friday night in St. Paul. The Blackhawks lead the series two to one. Home ice appears to be a factor.

Both teams are undefeated at home so far in the playoffs. The Wild are 4-0, the Blackhawks 5-0.

The status of forward Andrew Shaw for Game 4 remains in question. Shaw missed his second consecutive contest after suffering an apparent right leg injury when he was checked by the Wild’s Clayton Stoner in Game 1.

The real focus will be on Minnesota’s Matt Cooke, whose seven-game suspension ends. He was suspended for a knee-on-knee hit on Colorado’s Tyson Barrie in the opening round. The oft-suspended Cooke apologized for the hit and insists he’s a changed player.

“Although this one situation happened, I still believe and know that I’m in a good spot as far as the way I approach the game to go out and play a physical style without being riskful,” Cooke said. “Obviously there’s the one situation that’s going to be in my head that it happened, but I’m a firm believer in the work that I’ve put in to change the style, to change my approach to the game, to allow me to go out and have success.”

NOTES: The Columbus Blue Jacket playoff appearance was good for business. The club said it has sold more than 800 new season-ticket equivalents since April 1, a 22 per cent increase over last year. The Jackets likely will have close to 10,000 season-ticket equivalents by the start of next season, up from less than 7,000 to start last season. . . . The Penguins were left with only five defencemen Wednesday when Brooks Orpik left with an apparent knee injury.

More on thestar.com

We value respectful and thoughtful discussion. Readers are encouraged to flag comments that fail to meet the standards outlined in our
Community Code of Conduct.
For further information, including our legal guidelines, please see our full website
Terms and Conditions.